Level 10 Pickaxe When weapon is active: Damage increases as the user becomes injured-90% less healing from Medic sources

“

Get close enough to death, and you will become Death himself.

— Equalizer publicity blurb

”

The Equalizer is an unlockable melee weapon for the Soldier. It is a silver-headed pickaxe with blood on both its ends.

Once this weapon is equipped, it has the unique ability to increase the damage of the player as their health is diminished. It is therefore capable of destroying most buildings in two hits when the player is at low health. Consequently, the player receives 90% less healing from all Medic weapons when it is being used (healing from health kits and Dispensers is unaffected). Its critical hit animation is a backhanded swing, striking the enemy with the sharp end of the weapon.

Taunting with the Equalizer equipped will perform the Kamikaze kill taunt. A variation of the taunt is available to players who equip the Lumbricus Lid.

Originally, the Equalizer increased the player's movement speed as their health diminished, along with the increased damage. These attributes were separated in the Beta Split Equalizer in the Team Fortress 2 Beta, and added to the game in the June 27, 2012 Patch. The Equalizer's present attributes are taken from the Beta Split Equalizer 2, while the Escape Plan takes its attributes from the Beta Split Equalizer 1.

Damage and function times

Scales inversely with health. Approximately 107.25 − 0.37295 × H (107.25 minus 0.37295 multiplied H), where H is the player's current health, with a minimum of 33 when the player is at or above 100% health, and a maximum of 107 (before random damage and critical hits). TF2 uses RoundToCeil(); which then rounds the result to the next highest integer.

The Battalion's Backup gives the player 20 extra max health, but does not change the minimum and maximum damage. As a result, the damage increases more slowly as the player becomes injured, but is greater at identical health levels.

Changed no healing penalty to 90% less healing from Medics while active.

Trivia

The quote given for the commemorative plate for the Equalizer is a quote from the Japanese mecha anime known as Gurren Lagann by the character Kamina to his blood brother Simon to use his drill to pierce the vault of heaven.

Before becoming an official weapon, the Equalizer was first conceived by community members Tom Francis and Jibberish. These users were to receive a unique version of the weapon, called "The Great Equalizer"[1], but currently they are both labeled "Community Equalizer".

The name "The Equalizer" is most likely a reference to "The Great Equalizer," a term used to describe something that makes normally unequal things equal.